Record-breaking snowfall in November brings sales slump to NYC restaurants

Restaurants experienced a slight drop in sales this November compared to last year. The 0.2 percent decrease accompanies a national trend of decreasing covers year-over-year. This November, traffic fell by 5.7 as diners continue to decrease their restaurant visits.

New York City restaurants suffered the effects of a record-breaking snow storm on November 15th. The 6.4 inches of snow accumulation paralyzed the city and broke records for the biggest one-day November snowfall in 136 years. The storm caused travel issues at all major NYC ports of transit, a 20-vehicle crash on the George Washington Bridge, and some children even spent the night at schools because busses couldn’t get out.

These travel nightmares not only kept diners away from restaurants through the weekend, but also limited New York City restaurant employees from being able to make it into their work shifts. The snowstorm, coupled with a decrease in restaurant traffic, led New York City restaurants to be one of two cities examined in the Avero Index to see decreased sales this November. Washington D.C. also experienced a 4.2 percent drop.

In more positive news, Las Vegas restaurants saw their second straight month of sales growth this November. This is a very welcome change after enduring five months of decreasing sales from May-September this year. The increase in sales was seen across all periods of the day for the first time in a year. Breakfast/lunch and dinner/late night all experienced an increase in sales of about 10 percent.